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Syracuse tight end Luke Benson and defensive back Adrian Cole have entered the transfer portal, according to reports from 247Sports.

Benson notched just five catches for 22 yards during the 2021 season as Syracuse’s starting tight end — he was listed behind fullback/tight end Chris Elmore on many weeks’ depth charts, but Elmore missed eight of 12 games for various reasons.

Benson was used sparsely during his three-year career at Syracuse under head coach Dino Babers. He appeared in all but one game in 2019, 2020 and 2021 (this year’s Liberty game was his only absence). Yet he never registered more than two catches in a game, and his career-best performance was a one-catch, 70-yard game against Football Championship Subdivision Holy Cross during his freshman year.

His speed and pass-catching abilities were never fully utilized; instead, offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert used Benson primarily to block. “There’s like 100-something guys that aren’t as fast as Luke,” Babers said of the tight end on Sept. 20.

The Orange parted with tight ends coach Reno Ferri after the conclusion of their 5-7 season, along with Gilbert and defensive line coach Vince Reynolds.

On the defensive side, Cole had 17 tackles and four passes broken up during this season as a backup defensive back. He was listed as a backup cornerback to Garrett Williams for much of the year but played in nine of 12 games. Williams could potentially enter the NFL draft and not return to SU next year but has not yet announced his decision.

Cole said on Twitter that he received a degree from SU and has three years of eligibility remaining.

Cole redshirted in 2019 and saw limited time in 2020 as a reserve defensive back. When the secondary was banged up in 2020, he stepped up and made five tackles against Louisville and four against Notre Dame at the end of the year.

Other noteworthy former Syracuse players in the transfer portal include wide receiver Taj Harris, quarterback Tommy DeVito, running back Jarveon Howard, defensive lineman Curtis Harper and linebacker Geoff Cantin-Arku, among others.

Published on December 1, 2021 at 5:18 pm

Contact Roshan: rferna04@syr.edu | @Roshan_f16